It won't be Ranieri - but Italy need rebuilding from ruins

After an embarrassing decision to Norway connected Friday nighttime successful their opening World Cup qualifier, Italy are erstwhile again called upon to physique connected their ruins.

Having already failed to suffice for Russia 2018 and Qatar 2022, the menace of missing retired connected a 3rd consecutive World Cup led to the sacking of manager Luciano Spalletti.

Spalletti, hailed arsenic the saviour erstwhile appointed successful August 2023, paid the terms arsenic helium announced his ain sacking successful the aftermath.

Now, aft the outgoing Spalletti oversaw Monday's 2-0 win against Moldova, the hunt is connected for a successor arsenic they bid to rebuild a arrogant footballing nations from the ruins erstwhile more.

Is it truly imaginable that a federation similar Italy, victor of 4 World Cups, tin neglect to suffice for a 3rd consecutive tournament?

Italians asked the aforesaid question connected the eve of the past 2 World Cup play-offs, mislaid successful shocking manner to Sweden and Macedonia respectively.

The 3-0 decision to Norway has severely compromised the Azzurri hopes of finishing their radical connected apical spot.

Despite a triumph against Moldova - placed fig 154 successful the Fifa Ranking - Italy are down Norway, who pb Group I with 9 much points and a +10 extremity quality to the Azzurri.

With 4 wins retired of four, Norway person played 2 much games than Italy, but the Azzuri present judge they request to triumph their adjacent 5 games - boosting their extremity quality successful the process - earlier a must-win location lucifer against Norway successful November.

With conscionable the apical squad automatically qualifying, Italy bash not privation to trust connected different play-off.

The antheral to pb them? It won't beryllium Claudio Ranieri, aft 'The Tinkerman' - who performed galore miracles successful his vocation - was instantly approached by the Italian Football Association.

The 73-year-old has declined the connection and decided to ore connected his AS Roma activities aft a palmy spell arsenic impermanent brag past season. He has taken up an enforcement relation astatine the nine supra caller manager Gian Piero Gasperini.

Stefano Pioli, presently successful Saudi Arabia astatine Al-Nassr and antecedently manager astatine the likes of Lazio and Inter Milan, is the frontrunner to beryllium Spalletti's imaginable successor.

"Qualifying for the adjacent World Cup is simply necessary," said Marco Nosotti, Sky Italia journalist.

"It's a substance of wealth and prestige. The highest level of shot is played astatine those tournaments and it's perfectly mandatory for our players to bash that acquisition too."

Monday's triumph against Moldova took spot successful a surreal atmosphere; connected the seat sat a manager who had already been officially dismissed 48 hours earlier kick-off.

When Spalletti was appointed astir 2 years ago, helium was astatine the highest of his vocation - caller disconnected winning the Scudetto with Napoli - portion Italy had conscionable been abandoned by Saudi Arabia-bound Roberto Mancini, who had fixed them a European rubric but besides missed retired connected Qatar 2022.

So what went wrong?

Spalletti's tenure ends aft 24 games, with 12 wins and six defeats, a disastrous European Championship past summer, a promising Nations League radical signifier and a thunderous autumn successful Norway.

Having enjoyed occurrence with a 3-5-2 system, it was arsenic though the squad had gone backmost a twelvemonth to the miserable decision to Switzerland successful the past 16 of the Euros.

Questions stay wherefore helium prepared each week with a 3-4-2-1 enactment earlier switching backmost to 3-5-2 successful the pre-Norway meeting.

"After Euro 2024, Spalletti acknowledged helium had tried to convey excessively galore ideas to the players, ending up creating unit and confusion," Nosotti told the BBC.

"So helium simplified things and went backmost to a three-man defence, a fashionable solution for galore of the players successful his squad.

"Mateo Retegui and Moise Kean were cardinal forwards functional to his game, and helium built his squad astir the Inter (Milan) radical of players, who regularly play a 3-5-2 enactment astatine nine level too.

"Results were immediate, with victories successful Paris and Brussels successful the Nations League arsenic a effect of entertaining football.

"He again abandoned the way earlier Norway that gave him the astir confidence. Certainly not lone the manager is to blame; players astatine his disposal are what they are, but helium could person understood that clip was not capable to manager them the mode helium wants to."

Nosotto added: "With Mancini, the nationalist squad took a measurement forward. His was a squad without prima donnas.

"This radical was not truthful tight-knit evidently, among players and towards the coach."

Italian shot has structural biases, which person been preventing the maturation of the full question for years.

Only 34-36% of Serie A players are Italian, limiting the nationalist team's choice; though immoderate are present playing overseas and processing into modern players with cognition and quality.

For galore years, the nationalist younker teams person worked overmuch much connected the carnal and tactical aspects of the crippled alternatively than connected idiosyncratic technique, dissimilar different nations specified arsenic Spain, France and Germany.

However, things are dilatory changing astatine Coverciano, the Azzurri's grooming centre connected the outskirts of Florence.

Under the guidance of nationalist younker squad coordinator Maurizio Viscidi, Italy are trying to analyse results otherwise and thatch a caller mode of being and acting connected the pitch.

In caller years, the younker nationalist teams person achieved fantabulous results specified arsenic U17 and U19 European Champions titles, arsenic good arsenic finishing runners-up successful the U20 World Cup.

Ultimately though, these aforesaid youngsters are often not allowed to summation acquisition successful their respective archetypal teams, oregon successful lawsuit they are, the main requested absorption is connected tactics and safety.

"It is not lone a generational problem, but besides a methodological one," said erstwhile AC Milan brag Fabio Capello.

"At younker levels, alternatively of striving for quality, skills and fantasy, we inquire our boys to travel strict tactical rules, support possession and play with the goalkeeper."